1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for giving resistance to weed control compounds to plants.
2. Disclosure of the Related Art
Weed control is very important work for improving yields and quality of cultivated plants. For this purpose, weed control compounds such as herbicides are mainly used. However, for using weed control compounds, it is not always easy to distinguish cultivated plants from weeds of allied species to selectively control only weeds. Then, production of plants having resistance to weed control compounds (hereinafter referred to as weed control compound-resistance) has been attempted and some resistant plants have been put to practical use.
Recently, gene engineering techniques have been utilized for producing plants having weed control compound-resistance. As such a technique, for example, Hinchee, M. A. W. et al. disclose a method for producing a plant having resistance to a herbicide, glyphosate, wherein 5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase (EPSPS) gene which is a target enzyme of glyphosate is mutagenized so that an affinity for glyphosate is reduced, and the gene is introduced into a plant [Hinchee, M. A. W. et al., BIO/TECHNOLOGY, 6: p 915 (1988)].
Varieties of known methods for giving weed control compound-resistance to plants are not necessarily sufficient and it has been desired to develop further various kinds of methods for giving weed control compound-resistance to plants.
The main object of the present invention is to provide a new kind of a method for giving weed control compound-resistance to plants.
This object as well as other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following description with reference to the accompanying drawings.